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Saturday, January 30, 2016

Weekend Open Thread

Mola Ram! Prepare to meet Kali...in Hell!
Is everyone getting excited for #fthismoviefest? It's just two weeks away! Hopefully you're rounding up the movies you don't already own (and you should really own most if not all of these movies).

In the meantime, let's talk about movies. Or TV. Or music. Or books. I'm finally reading Jack Ketchum's The Girl Next Door and it's giving me nonstop panic attacks.

62 comments:

So here's something that I've been doing this week that is probably more difficult and stressful than it's worth. Some people do a top 5 favorite movies list, others a top 10, but I figured, why stop there? I have made my best effort at compiling my top 100 favorite movies! It was tough, and I'm still not completely satisfied, but for better or worse, here it is:

I've been maintaining and editing a favorites list for years because I feel an intense urge to categorize and organize everything I possibly can in this chaotic, terrifying universe.

Or maybe lists are fun, idk. I could never do 100 because at a certain point I'd get away from movies I love that mean a lot to me and just have movies that I really really like, which I'm not sure should be classified as favorites.

The list is in flux a lot, but the top ten is really set in stone (at least it has been for a month).

1. Star Wars (1977)2. The Godfather (1972)3. Back to the Future (1985)4. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)5. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)6. Seven Samurai (1954)7. Pulp Fiction (1994)8. There Will Be Blood (2007)9. It's Such a Beautiful Day (2012)10. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)

runner-ups: Do the Right Thing, The End of Evangelion, Blade Runner, Pan's Labyrinth, The Shining, The Big Lebowski, Scott Pilgrim VS the World, Apocalypse Now, Aguirre: The Wrath of God, Groundhog Day, The Thing, The 400 Blows, RoboCop, The Good the Bad and the Ugly, Bicycle Thieves, Evil Dead II

Thanks! To Chaybee's comment, I know Die Hard probably deserves to be at a much higher position, but I haven't revisited it in a while (I meant to after the passing of Alan Rickman, but I just didn't get around to it), and wasn't confident in putting it at a higher position. I need to watch it again ASAP. But you're right. After about 25-30 I start going cross-eyed and it becomes much herder.

Kino, high five on the Best in Show love! Every time I watch it I have a great time with it! I like that list of yours! I should probably have a Kurowsawa movie higher up, too. And I've never seen The End of Evangelion or Aguirre: The Wrath of God from your honorable mentions. Methinks I'll have to add those to my watch list!

Cool idea. I might give it a shot. It seems easier to my mind because I've never been able to wrap my mind around making a top ten list of movies, bands etc. I'm gonna need to see Coraline at some point it keeps coming up, and I'm definitely a fan of stop-motion.

Coraline is beautiful and creepy in all of the best ways, Charles. Especially if you are a fan of the stop-motion style, it's absolutely worth your time. And yes, I'm personally much more of a fan of Batman Returns. I love the vibe of the whole thing, and Michelle Pfeiffer and Danny DeVito make for an excellent Selina Kyle/Catwoman and Oswald Cobblepot/Penguin.

I made a top 30 a while back. My list always shifts a little depending on what mood I'm in when you ask. 1. Cool Hand Luke2. The Great Escape3. Raiders of the Lost Ark4. 2001: A Space Odyssey5. Back to the Future6. Ferris Bueller's Day Off7. Airplane!8. Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back9. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest10. Psycho11. Monty Python and the Holy Grail12. The Sting13. Rear Window14. The Blues Brothers15. Kill Bill: Vol. 116. Jurassic Park17. Toy Story18. Planet of the Apes19. The Shining20. Vertigo21. The Ten Commandments22. Jaws23. Pulp Fiction24. To Kill a Mockingbird25. The Godfather26. Django Unchained27. Wet Hot American Summer28. Ghostbusters29. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid30. The Graduate

...and the messenger pigeons, I mean, c'mon! If I had to do a top 11 Comedy list, in no order it would include: The Private EyesThe BurbsSafe MenGet ShortyStrange BrewBest In ShowCluelessThe TenMr. MomThick as ThievesThe Golden Child

Kino, I've been pushing that film on here forever trying to get people to see it. I mean Hell, it's my second favorite movie of all time. It's a freaking masterpiece. If anyone has the bok/dvd and is willing to sell it, please let me know. I contacted the distributor at one point and it was really hard to communicate with the language barrier and they wanted a wire transfer instead of PayPal so I never was able to go through with it.

Saw this in the theater with my Dad when I was 12. Hard to be impressed by modern big budget, special effects heavy block busters when T2 did it better almost 25 years ago.

2. Amadeus

The two lead performances make this movie for me. Another great 1984 movie which I'll likely watch right after the marathon.

3. Phantom of the Paradise

My brother gave me a 12 inch Phantom action figure and a Beef t-shirt. We're both quite fond of this movie.

4. The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Eli Wallach steals the show as Tuco.

5. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

Used to be on TV all the time when I was a kid. Wasn't until after the first dozen times seeing it, that I realized I wasn't just enjoying it ironically.

6. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

My mom let me, my brother, and my sister watch this opening day instead of going to school. Love Raiders, but the interplay between Ford and Connery makes this my favorite of the series.

7. Bubba Ho-Tep

Bruce Campbell, Ossie Davis, and adapted from a Joe R. Lansdale story. Interesting things to think about in terms of how we treat the elderly.

8. Reservoir Dogs

Not Tarantino's "best" but my favorite. Maybe because of the rough edges and the fact that he has to rely so heavily on the performances of the cast.

9. Shallow Grave

Again, not the "best" Danny Boyle movie (whom I have a lot of respect for because he almost never repeats genres), but the roughness of it, along with Eccleston, and McGregor together at the start of their careers... really enjoy this one.

10. Inception

Half of Nolan's movies would be perfectly at home on this list, but I think Inception is the most ambitious and for the most part he nails it.

So did anyone get a chance to see Big Game yet? As the representative of Finland on this site, I'm curious to hear opinions on the movie.

I just recently saw it a second time and it still works for me. It's just stupid fun, which is exactly what it wants to be. But maybe I'm just willing myself to like it, I've read some really bad reviews.

I LOVED Big Game. i wouldn't call it stupid. While it was a little predictable it was so well made I didn't mind. Some of the shots such as the villain falling from the plane were among the most beautiful in recent memory. And Samuel Jackson is a national treasure. This movie made me want to visit Finland.

I loved Big Game too. I think the bad reviews came from people who thought they were going to be getting another Air Force One. Instead it turned out to be an action movie for kids! But, it's a legit 'action movie for kids', not the silly 3 Ninjas/Agent Cody Banks style kids adventure movies they usually give them. It's a super fun premise, the kid was a badass, it was cool that Sam J. was a straight up wimp who truly needed the kid to save him, and Ray Stevenson was great as always. And on top of everything, it ends up being fucking uplifting! I was very impressed, especially since I don't like Rare Exports.

Just saw the Revenant...and it's fuckin great. If Leo doesn't win the Oscar, I feel like he might freak out. "What the fuck do I have to do?" is what he'll scream while running around the Academy Awards naked. I saw Backcountry. I haven't heard anyone talking about it. It's really good and has a bear scene that is absolutely terrifying. I would say it's better than the Revenant's. The Editor was so good. I think it's top five good. I kind of want to watch it over and over again.

You totally did and I'm ashamed. Anyway, I thought the way it started was great. I felt the tension immediately. It was just a lot better than I expected it to be. I showed this to my wife so she would never ask me to go camping ever.

Cheers to the no camping clique! No chance you'll get my ass in a tent all hiking and whatever. You think when early settlers figured out how to build homes they were like "fuck it, I still want to sleep outside sometimes" - hell no!

I did. I wasn't crazy about it. What really killed me about it was that they went full on Comedy and had they played it straight and made the Giallo it would have been freaking perfect. They had the aesthetic and everything dead on, they just made it too obvious of a parody in my opinion.

I laughed a lot...by myself. I get it, though. If you're not all-in with the comedy and looking for it to be straight, I can see it being disappointing. I don't know how you could do it straight. Giallos are insane and rarely make any sense. I'm not quite there in totally digging Italian horror. I watched The Bird with the Crystal Plumage before it and was super bored. I don't think you need to know the genre to love it either. It's pretty bonkers. I think I remember Patrick liking it as well.

Went and did a tour of Kualoa Ranch today, which is a place on Oahu where a large portion of Jurassic Park was filmed. Got to actually lay underneath the fallen tree where Dr. Grant and the kids spotted the running heard as well see a number of movies filming locations.. Saw some super secret props from Skull Island. By super secret I mean I peaked under a tarp...nothing earth shattering to report. Was cool to walk in the shadow of Dinosaurs. Now let the Jurassic movie marathon begin! Yes even 2 & 3 (and 4 depending on your POV).

Agreed! I think Sam Neill just makes everything better. He even has me returning to the Omen 3: The Final Conflict (not a good movie). Dare I mention the best space horror Event Horizon. Please everyone let me know what's better. Alien and Sunshine don't qualify.

I'm watching The Manipulator (1971) right now. Mickey Rooney has been torturing a young actress for the entire runtime. Rooney is committed to a frightening degree. Photography and editing are of the expelrimental psychedelic variety. A climactic sequence is playing out with the imprisoned protagonist surrounded by a string quartet and more hanging sides of beef than the Rocky franchise could ever imagine. Oh god, I feel like I'm dreaming this fucking movie. I genuinely like almost the entire batshit score.

The Manipulator is such a cool movie! Rooney is so whacked in it. I think he brought some personal demons to that role. I love the vibe of the movie; it seems of a piece with stuff like Death Game and Messiah of Evil to me.

Chicago F-heads - what do you think of the new Tortoise album? I've been listening to it a bit over the weekend and I think it's decent. Not as good as older stuff but the fact they are still recording is awesome and John McEntire is an engineering genius.

In honor of this year's F! This Movie Fest, Here are my Top Ten of 1984:1 Ghostbuster2 Gremlins3 Friday the 13th Final Chapter4 A Nightmare on Elm Street5 Beverly Hills Cop6 The Natural7 Sixteen Candles8 This is Spinal Tap9 Police Academy10 Footloose